As Chu Shaoqiang doffed his top hat, He Jiaqing finally recognized him. To say he wasn’t shocked would be a lie; in Puluo State, everyone knew that Chu Shaoqiang was dead. Most people believed he died while clearing the wilderness, while a minority knew he fell at the hands of the Border Defense Envoy. But almost no one knew he was still alive, and He Jiaqing truly didn’t know.
However, He Jiaqing knew one thing: encountering Chu Shaoqiang here should not be a coincidence.
"Uncle Qiang, did you come to Wuqin Village to find me?" Chu Shaoqiang was an elder, so He Jiaqing spoke to him very politely.
Chu Shaoqiang laughed and said, "Let’s eat noodles first, it’s my treat."
Chu Shaoqiang ordered two bowls of noodles, selected two side dishes, and a pot of wine.
The two had a meal together, and He Jiaqing said, "Uncle Qiang, isn’t it time to talk about the real issue?"
After Chu Shaoqiang settled the bill for the meal, he smiled and said, "Let’s go outside to talk. It’s not too good to involve these unrelated people here."
They left the noodle shop, and Chu Shaoqiang even specifically cautioned, "Don’t walk close to the wall; there’s a mire."
After speaking, Chu Shaoqiang looked at his leather shoes; the dried muddy residue still hadn’t been cleaned off.
As they walked and talked, Chu Shaoqiang said, "You were quite lovable as a child, and I was also close friends with Haiqin. I even thought about bonding Huai Yuan and you in a child betrothal, but Huai Yuan was spoiled by me, and no matter what I said, she wouldn’t agree."
He Jiaqing laughed and said, "It’s because I’m not worthy of Miss Huaiyuan."
"That’s why I say you’re a sensible kid; you speak so considerately."
As they walked from the main streets to the alleys, Chu Shaoqiang began to address the matter at hand. "In Puluo State, I’ve heard quite a few rumors about you."
He Jiaqing said, "If it’s about the rumors related to Sage Peak, there must be a lot of misunderstandings involved."
Chu Shaoqiang nodded. "I also think there are misunderstandings here. I’ve recently had some misunderstandings with Sage Peak too. I plan to take you to Sage Peak to clear up these misunderstandings."
Upon hearing this, He Jiaqing slipped his hands into his pockets. "Is this the purpose of your visit to Wuqin Village, Uncle Qiang?"
"Not entirely, but since we’ve met, you might as well come with me."
"I can’t go to Sage Peak; the Saint residing there doesn’t tolerate me."
"Jia Qing, I just want to take you to Sage Peak, but I’m not planning to discuss this with you." Chu Shaoqiang glanced at He Jiaqing’s hands. "Is your hand in your pocket because you’re reaching for a weapon?"
He Jiaqing shook his head. "I am an honest kid, and I wouldn’t dare to be presumptuous in front of an elder."
"Even if it’s reaching for a weapon, it’s okay. I appreciate a junior like you, and I also want to see your true capabilities." Chu Shaoqiang smiled, and a Hunting Net fell from the sky, landing right on He Jiaqing.
Chu Shaoqiang’s face bore a trace of regret, as He Jiaqing’s strength had disappointed him.
He advised He Jiaqing, "Kid, don’t struggle; you won’t break free, and struggling aimlessly will only cause you more pain."
He Jiaqing felt the material of the Hunting Net and sighed. "Indeed, I can’t break free from this net, but perhaps Uncle Qiang has a way."
Chu Shaoqiang furrowed his brow, not understanding the meaning of this remark.
Chu Shaoqiang didn’t dare to be careless, focusing his mind and preparing for a Mental Cultivation Technique.
He Jiaqing pulled his hand out of his pocket, holding a small knife.
He used the knife to slice through the Hunting Net and quickly vanished from Chu Shaoqiang’s sight.
"Impossible! How could his knife cut through my Hunting Net?" Chu Shaoqiang couldn’t quite believe it.
In shock, he suddenly felt he was missing something.
Chu Shaoqiang looked in the direction where He Jiaqing had fled.
He didn’t pursue. Thief Cultivators excel at fleeing for their lives. They couldn’t match Traveling Cultivators in speed and endurance, but they were much better than Craftsman Cultivators.
Chu Shaoqiang had the Magical Treasure of a Traveling Cultivator, but He Jiaqing had already been gone for a while, and even with the treasure, it would be very difficult to catch up to him.
Moreover, Craftsman Cultivators were very restricted in front of Thief Cultivators, and Chu Shaoqiang didn’t want to take unnecessary risks.
he mused.
Chu Shaoqiang walked around the town for a while and saw Ma Wu preparing a construction site on the street.
He glanced at the plans in Ma Wu’s hands and learned that Ma Wu was going to build a restaurant.
Chu Shaoqiang looked at Ma Wu’s blueprint and said, "Little brother, this restaurant you are building is too extravagant. It doesn’t quite fit this place."
Ma Wu turned around to look at Chu Shaoqiang. He found him familiar yet couldn’t recall where he had seen him before. Being able to discern the quality of the plans from the blueprint proved this person knew his business, and Ma Wu always respected knowledgeable people. "I think this restaurant is still quite simple. It’s several levels below Qian Yue Tower," Ma Wu replied.
"Qian Yue Tower?" Chu Shaoqiang laughed. "That’s one of the top restaurants in Greenwater City. This is Wuqin Village. How can it support such a fine establishment?"
"It can support it!" Ma Wu was confident. "Big brother, this place won’t be called Wuqin Village in the future; it will be Qi Qiu City."
"Qi Qiu City? Wuqin Village has been called that for so many years. Who changed the name?" Chu Shaoqiang couldn’t understand.
With a smile, Ma Wu said, "What if I told you the Local Deity changed it? Would you believe that?"
It was Qiu Luoye who changed the name. Li Banfeng thought it should be Autumn Seven City, but since Qiu Luoye was the elder brother, the elder brother’s name should come first.
Qiu Luoye said, "Autumn Seven City sounds like seven cities. We only have one city. When we have seven cities, then we can call it Autumn Seven City!"
Qi Qiu City, that’s what it became.
Ma Wu said to Chu Shaoqiang, "Big brother, you are someone with real skill. Qi Qiu City is now hiring. If you are willing, you can come work with me. I never shortchange people with real talent!"
"Sure," Chu Shaoqiang nodded. "I’ll draw you another blueprint, one that’s even more impressive than Qian Yue Tower!"
...
Xiao Zhenggong walked along the village path, listening to Liu Guocai’s explanation of the situation.
"Captain Xiao, there has been a misunderstanding here. I implore you to clarify things with the higher-ups," Liu Guocai said.
Xiao Zhenggong sneered, "I’ve come all this way, and you’re telling me it’s a misunderstanding? Sage Peak is still waiting for my report."
"Then I must trouble you to also speak with the Saint on our behalf," Liu Guocai entreated.
"And how should I say it? You teach me," Xiao Zhenggong said sarcastically.
"I wouldn’t dare, Captain Xiao. If only you could convey the truth, I would be eternally grateful."
"We’ll see about that. Is what you call the truth really the truth? We’ll talk after the investigation is clear," Xiao Zhenggong dismissed.
「That evening」, Liu Guocai hosted a dinner banquet, inviting Xiao Zhenggong and his group. Liu Guocai repeatedly mentioned, "Wuqin Village doesn’t have much. The ingredients and the chef, they all came from Greenwater City."
Xiao Zhenggong nodded slightly, with a hint of appreciation in his expression.
Truthfully, Big Head had never had liquor and dishes of such high quality.
But he dared not move his chopsticks—their mission this time was quite special, and he was not familiar with Liu Guocai. Besides, Liu Guocai held a high position, and this humble attitude made Big Head very uncomfortable.
"Go ahead and eat! It’s rare for Officer Liu to offer such hospitality!" Xiao Zhenggong spoke, and with that, Big Head no longer needed to be polite.
Just as he picked up his chopsticks, a woman in a dark blue cheongsam sat down next to Big Head and began pouring him a drink.
In the Outside Provinces, a cheongsam was not a rare sight, but this was the first time Big Head had seen such an exquisitely detailed cheongsam that could display every detail so clearly.
Of course, the appearance is exhibited on the cheongsam, yet the essence of the details stems from the lady herself.
Big Head blushed. Xiao Zhenggong, looking at Big Head, smiled and said, "Go on, eat. Everything here is delicious. In Puluo State, it’s not so formal."
...
After staying in Wuqin Village for only two days, Xiao Zhenggong set out for Cheap Person Ridge.
When he reached Sage Peak, there were checkpoints on the mountain path, and everyone was forbidden from ascending further.
Xiao Zhenggong glanced at the man guarding the checkpoint and asked in a low voice, "Do you know who I am?"
The man actually did know, and he responded softly, "Brother, please don’t make it difficult for me. Forbidding you from the mountain is for your own good—there’s an epidemic up there that’s already killed dozens of our brothers."
Xiao Zhenggong was taken aback. "What kind of epidemic?"
"Rashes, ones with green pus. They can spread over someone in just one day, and within three days, the person would be dead. My being able to guard this checkpoint is already lucky. As for the brothers on the mountain, I don’t know if they can survive until tomorrow."
Xiao Zhenggong immediately left Sage Peak. As a high-ranking Martial Cultivator, he sped away at the velocity of a Traveling Cultivator.
Xiao Zhenggong looked at the farmers working by the roadside, and he hadn’t yet seen any sign of rashes on them.
...
Cui Tiq took a bowl of water from a farmer and drank it in one go.
「Three days had passed.」
He had been walking for a full three days and still couldn’t get out of Cheap Person Ridge.
This was due to a Technique used by the Saint, the high-ranking Lust Cultivation Technique—Layers of Ranges.
Cui Tiq had seen this Technique once before, but he didn’t know how to break it.
He was faced with two paths before him.
The first path was to keep going, trying to find a way out of Cheap Person Ridge. Layers of Ranges did have an end, but whether he could pick the correct direction depended on Cui Tiq’s luck.
Even with extreme luck and choosing the right direction, it would take ten days to half a month to reach the edge of Cheap Person Ridge; the Saint only needed to change the Technique once, and the struggle would begin anew.
The second path was to spread the plague directly in the village.
These villagers were the Saint’s livelihood—he relied on them to survive.
If Cui Tiq spread the epidemic to the villages, causing one after another to die off, he could force the Saint to let him leave.
But doing so would reveal Cui Tiq’s whereabouts, and he could be captured by the Saint at any moment.
Cui Tiq was torn between the two paths; he had to choose one of them.
Just as he was about to make a decision, a man wearing a white cross-collared robe with a white top hat, holding a Folding Fan, came up to Cui Tiq.
"From out of town? Lost your way, have you? I’ll show you the way."
Cui Tiq frowned and asked, "Who are you?"
The man smiled and said, "Right now, I’m your benefactor, and later, probably an acquaintance. Your Grandmaster wants to collaborate with me, and he has offered quite a sincere token. I ought to return a gift to him in kind."
"What collaboration, what return gift?" Cui Tiq didn’t want to believe the man before him.
The man urged, "Let’s get out of here first and then talk. The last place I should ever come to is Cheap Person Ridge."
The man did not deceive Cui Tiq and led him for over two hours. At the end of the mountain road, a valley appeared.
Cui Tiq had walked this mountain path many times but had never seen the valley before.
"What Technique did you use? How did you find the way out?" Cui Tiq didn’t understand.
The man looked at the valley. "Let’s walk and see; it’s hard to say if this is really the way out."
Passing through the valley, a wasteland appeared ahead.
Cui Tiq said with surprise, "This is Worry-Free Plain."
The man nodded. "Worry-Free Plain, once the Royal Capital, now the Old Land. Let’s hurry; we’d better not run into the Playacting Prince."
Cui Tiq said, "You seem to know this place well."
"Yes, the folks here wanted to invite me over. If I didn’t recognize the roads, how could I dare to visit randomly?"
Leaving Worry-Free Plain, the man took Cui Tiq on the nearest train back to Greenwater Bay.
Upon arriving at the Boundless Hospital, a doctor was in Cui Tiq’s office, going through medical cases.
"Grandmaster, I have completed the mission," Cui Tiq said, bowing to the doctor.
Greenwater Beggar removed his mask and nodded while smiling. "I’ve been looking after your business all along."
After speaking, Greenwater Beggar turned to the man in the white robe. "He Jiaqing, you are very trustworthy."
Cui Tiq was startled—it turned out this person was He Jiaqing.
He Jiaqing raised his eyebrows. "The Head of the family of Greenwater Bay better keep his word too."
Greenwater Beggar took out a semi-circular Iron Token from his bosom and handed it to He Jiaqing.
Upon accepting the Iron Token and verifying it, He Jiaqing said to Greenwater Beggar, "I really didn’t expect you to use something so precious just to trade for a disciple."
Greenwater Beggar looked at Cui Tiq and said, "He’s worth it."
He Jiaqing received the Contract Book and said, "I believe we’ll have many more opportunities to collaborate."
Greenwater Beggar nodded. "There are indeed quite a few opportunities at the moment. You must know Chu Shaoqiang, right?"
PS: Greenwater Beggar has an extra Contract Book, which comes from another beggar.